'It's hard to pull entire families from under the rubble'
The Edinburgh volunteers helping Ukraine's extraordinary firefighters
“We are ordinary people” he says, “and we have hearts too. It's hard to pull entire families from under the rubble... children. It's tough to lose our comrades. But what can we do?
“This is the job we chose with our hearts and souls. People count on us, and we have no right to let them down.”
The brave and moving words of a Ukrainian firefighter, working in the city of Dnipro to carry out rescues in the most dangerous of circumstances as Russia continues its aggressive invasion of its neighbour.
He speaks of the emotional and exhausting nature of the work being undertaken by his colleagues. And he’s not speaking to international media covering the war, but to a former Edinburgh fireman and his extraordinary team of volunteers who have been supporting the work of Ukrainian emergency first responders throughout the conflict.
And he’s speaking to them to say thank you.
Consider this letter from another Ukrainian firefighter: ““You need to know that for us, this is more than a fire engine and equipment support… The thing is, above all, this shows us that we are supported, that we are not alone. This gives us hope, the desire to live, and the will to continue our work and our fight.”
Gary Bennett’s Scottish Emergency Rescue Association takes fire engines, specially equipped pick-ups, and literally lorryloads of rescue equipment to bolster the efforts of those who daily risk their lives to save others in Ukraine. They’ve taken large generators to power hospitals without electricity and keep villages connected with power. And unlike almost every other charity, they drive the vehicles deep into Ukraine themselves.
And now, they are launching a new appeal. For more pick-ups, at the request of the Ukrainian firefighters, to help beat the Russian tactic of “double-tapping” – striking a target with a missile, waiting on emergency services to arrive to aid the stricken, and then striking the same target again. It has claimed the lives and seriously injured many men and women who are first on she scene at any missile strike or bomb site.
Gary said: “It’s a horrific tactic, and it is one of the biggest dangers the firefighters and other first responders are facing in Ukraine. It’s a privilege to help them, even if all we can do is give them the best equipment that we can so they can carry on doing an extremely dangerous and difficult job.
Looking for pick-ups
“Right now, they’ve asked us to supply more specially fitted pick-ups. Because these are smaller vehicles, they are much harder for the Russians to target. We’re looking for donations of pick-ups that we can get to work on transforming into fire and rescue appliances.”
The Dnipro firefighter testifies to the horrors of the double-tap strike. His most awful personal moment arrived in April 2022, when he and his wife were amongst the first responders to the site of a missile strike. Forty minutes later, the missiles arrived again, this time targeting the emergency workers.
“My wife was severely injured. I and four other rescuers sustained various injuries and were hospitalized. After such calls, you look at the situation very differently. You realize that the lives of not only the people we are rescuing but also the rescuers themselves depend on our actions.”
“Even I’m not sure how we do it…”
Gary is determined to help, as he has in Ukraine since Putin invaded Crimea in 2014, and then renewed his war almost three years ago. “We have been sending fire engines out for much of that time, although clearly things ramped up after the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
“Since then, we’ve sent over 36 fire-appliances, 28 of these full-sized fire engines which have seen action in cities and towns throughout Ukraine. Unlike many other charities, we deliver them directly to Ukraine, and then we also provide training in their use. We have an amazing and eclectic group of volunteers, including retired and current firefighters, but also people from other walks of life.
“To be honest even I’m not entirely sure how we do it on the very small budget we have, but it is really down to a great partnership we have with the Blythswood charity funding of £10,000 from Lush, and support and partnership from many others, and the incredible generosity of people, fire services, companies, and a whole host of organisations. It is really humbling.”
As well as the fire appliances, each of which carries equipment, Gary and his team have also sent out eight big lorry loads of emergency equipment. This has included everything from protective clothing to large generators.
Gary added: “The generators are really important, not just to keep heating and lighting going for communities, but we have also taken two across that are used to keep hospitals running in emergencies. And the generators also help people keep their mobile phones powered – their phones provide them with warnings of incoming air raids and are an absolute essential.”
If you want an indication of the scale and intensity that some of Ukraine’s emergency services face, consider this. The number of artillery shells fired at the Ukraine part of Kherson region ranges from 500-700 per day, which is about three times what was fired a year ago, and targeting critical infrastructure including hospitals. Hundreds of drones strikes have also been used to hit domestic homes, including multi-storey blocks.
Flooding killed hundreds
In 2024 regional firefighters had to extinguish almost 1100 fires – with around three-quarters of these caused by shelling. Dozens of people, including children, have been rescued from burning buildings. And fire engines taken Ukraine by Gary and his team have played their part here, as they have elsewhere in Ukraine.
They also supplied inflatable boats in the summer of 2023, when the Russians targeted the huge Kakhovka Dam in the region, causing massive flooding, destruction and killing hundreds of people.
Gary said: “We’re acutely aware that while we provide equipment and some training, it is the Ukraine firefighters who do the work, and we recognise the dangers they face. It is a privilege to support them.”
He has led all of the deliveries except one (when he had covid) and has grown to admire his colleagues and their families in Ukraine. “They are incredibly resilient people. There is so much about them and their attitude to admire. I am always happy to be working with my colleagues delivering more equipment and I know all our volunteers feel the same way about the trips to Ukraine. We know there is some risk, but nothing like the risk that the Ukrainians face every day.
“We’d all much rather be there helping than out shopping in Princes Street.”
“What I’m feeling inside right now is indescribable”
Gary is always open to being contacted directly by Ukrainian services needing help. One small rural service were astonished when he was able to help them, and delighted firefighters sent a message that expressed astonishment that their emailed request had been met without any official government involvement and said: “Usually, it’s big cities that receive such help, not communities and fire safety brigades like ours. You need to know that for us, this is more than a fire engine and equipment support.
“Believe me, what I’m feeling inside right now is indescribable. I’ve been trying to write a thank-you message, but I keep typing and deleting – it’s happened several times already because I have so many thoughts…
“Guys from other communities asked me how I managed to get help from you. They couldn’t believe that no higher-ups negotiated this for us and that I didn’t pay anyone anything, all I did was send you that message asking for help.”
If you want to help Gary and his team, you can visit their website here.
If you found this interesting, you may want to read some of our previous long reads on Ukraine and Edinburgh:
Today is a symbol of hope for thousands in Edinburgh
How Edinburgh’s sports centres became a refuge for Ukrainians who fled the war
I love Edinburgh, I love Scotland, but I didn’t plan to come here